London Marathon 2024: Where to grab a free meal pre and post race
Eve Davies
·11-min read
What you can get for FREE with your LM medalGetty Images
Crossing the London Marathon finishing line brings with it an enormous sense of achievement, but it might also leave you in dire need of refuelling. Or perhaps you just really fancy a celebratory drink and burger. Luckily, that marathon medal you just earned is not just a reminder of your achievement, it also entitles you to some lovely treats at a string of generous London restaurants, cafes and bars who are offering free food and drink to finishers. And what's more, there's even some products on offer to help you recover.
So whether you’re craving a burger, pint, some post-race protein or something to help ease the aches, there’s enough on offer to make everyone feel like a winner.
DINESPHOTOGRAPHY
Bills
What? Bill's is offering London Marathon medallists a free burger and beer at any of their London restaurants. Just show them your 2024 medal on Sunday 21 or Monday 22 April and you'll get a free burger of your choice, plus a bottle of Peroni, Lucky Saint or an Aperol Spritz (non-alcohol options are welcome too)!
Where? At all 11 Bill's restaurants in London. Bill's also advise you to book in advance as they will no doubt be busy.
How far? Covent Garden (18 min walk) and Soho (15 min walk) are the nearest to the finish line, though there are plenty in wider London too – Hammersmith, Wimbledon, Richmond and Greenwich to name a few – if you are heading home or to a hotel.
Brockwell Lido & Park Road Leisure
What? Charity leisure operator, Fusion Lifestyle, is offering marathon runners the chance to improve their recovery with a free swim at iconic lidos in North and South London.
Where? Free sessions for London Marathon participants are running now up until Sunday 28 April at Rockwell Lido and Park Road Leisure, allowing runners to get in a taper swim or post-race recovery session in the week following the race. Simply show your race confirmation info to gain access.
How far? The lidos are slightly further out, but you've a full week to hobble their post-race to claim this offer.
Lush
What? You might be starving after the race.. or you might just be sore and all you can think about is a hot bath. Get yourself to Lush, then, because the handmade fresh cosmetics company is giving away their all-new Cold Water Soother Epsom salt cube (worth £6) and Wiccy Magic Muscles solid massage oil (worth £8) for a whole week to help London Marathon runners recover.
Where? Lush stores taking part include: Oxford Street, Paddington Station, Waterloo Station and Victoria Station. All you have to do to is head to one of the participating Lush stores between Sunday 21 April and Sunday 28 April between and show your London Marathon 2024 medal to a member of staff.
How far? Given the stores are at four of the major transport hubs for travelling in, out and around London, hopefully runners will find one of the locations on their way back home.
Franco Manca
What? Flash your 2024 medal when dining in at any Franco Manca pizzeria on Sunday 21 April or Monday 22 April to claim a free pizza from their brand new spring and summer menu or specials board. Buon appetito!
Where? This offer is available nationwide so it can be redeemed by runners travelling back home across England, Scotland and Wales. You can view the full list of Franco Manca restaurants here.
How far? The Covent Garden restaurant is a 15-minute walk from the finish line and Aldwich is an 18-minute walk. However, you can't pre-book at Franco Manca and as they might get very busy, it's perhaps a safer bet to head home or away from the finish to one of the many other locations.
Nic Crilly-Hargrave
MEATliquor
What? It's burgers all round this year. MEATLiquor are offering a free burger on the day of the race for all medal holders. All that protein will help recovery for sure.
Where: All London MEATLiquors will be participating in the offer, so if runners can’t redeem it from W1 Soho, the closest restaurant to the finish line, you can try one of the other London restaurants – including Bloomsbury, Islington and Shoreditch, which are within a three mile radius of the finish line.
Maxwell’s Bar & Grill
What? Maxwell's will be offering a free burger to all marathon runners. Simply flash your medal and your efforts will be rewarded with a delicious burger.
Where? In Covent Garden, and you can also book a table in advance if you know your likely timings.
How far? Around an 18-minute walk from the finish line.
Boulevard Brasserie
What? As with Maxwell's just show your marathon medal and you will get a delicious free burger to refuel you.
Where? In Covent Garden, on Wellington Street. Again, you can book a table in advance online. How far? Around an 18 min walk from the finish line.
Palm Court
What? Show your medal at Palm Court, and you will get a free steak frites. Protein AND carbs, it's the perfect celebratory refuelling!
Where? Another Covent Garden brassiere, this one beautifully decorated in classical 1920’s art nouveau style. Book a table online here.
How far? Around an 18 min walk from the finish line
The Real Greek
The Real Greek
What? The Real Greek will be offering a free Greek Plate for all London Marathon runners upon presenting their medal from Sunday 21 April until Wednesday 27 April 2024. You can choose between a chicken skewer, halloumi and vegetable skewer, pork skewer, loukaniko skewer, falafel or lamb meatballs and all come served with saffron rice, Greek salad, tzatziki and warm Greek flatbread. Or you can opt for the vegan Greek plate. This offer is for dine-in only and cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer/promotion.
Where? This offer can be used for a lunch or evening meal at any of their UK restaurants, not just London. A full list of The Real Greek restaurants can be viewed here.
How far? Their restaurant in Covent Garden is only a 12-minute walk from the finish line.
Heliot Steak House
What? Heliot Steak House are offering runners a free Argentinian rib eye steak or Claire Heliot burger to restore those iron levels and B vitamins. Marathon finishers can claim this offer on Sunday 21 April and Monday 22 April by showing their medal at Heliot Steak House where they can refuel while overlooking Soho from the rooftop.
Where? Heliot Steak House is located in Hippodrome Casino at Leicester Square. You can book a table here.
How far? Less than a 10-minute walk from the finish line, waste no time in grabbing this deal.
Runna's marathon after party
What? Coaching app Runna are holding a post-race celebration at Red Bull HQ where they promise to have drinks and snacks for runners to raise a toast to their success with Team Runna.
Where? Red Bull HQ is located at Covent Garden. You can sign up for a free ticket here.
How far? A 10-15 minute walk from the finish line, depending how quick the legs can stroll after 26.2 miles.
Barry's after party
What? A bootcamp class will certainly not be on the cards after the marathon, but Barry's are holding an exclusive after party for runners between 12pm and 5pm on race day. There will be live music to keep spirits high and medal holders can enjoy a complimentary HERMOSA protein shake to replenish their muscles.
Where? Fuel Bar at Barry's SW1, close by Victoria station if you don't fancy the walk post race.
How far? A bit of a longer walk from the finish line at 30 minutes.
Crossing the London Marathon finishing line brings with it an enormous sense of achievement but it's also likely to leave you with an empty stomach, desperately craving resupply. Thankfully the marathon medal isn't the only reward on offer as a string of London restaurants, cafes and bars are offering free food and drink to finishers.
Whether you’re craving a burger, pint, or some post-race protein, there’s enough on offer to make everyone feel like a winner.
1. London Brasseries
What? London Brasseries are inviting all marathon runners to enjoy a free meal at any of their five central London restaurants. Simply flash your medal and your efforts will be rewarded with a delicious burger (or steak frites at Palm Court) on the house.
Where? You can choose from any of the five brasseries across the city: Old Compton, Maxwell’s Bar & Grill, Palm Court, Boulevard Brasserie, or PJ’s Chelsea Brasserie.
How far? The nearest branches - Old Compton, Maxwell’s Bar & Grill, and Palm Court – are all a leisurely 18-minute stroll from the finish line.
2. Leon
What? For carb-loading and re-loading this weekend, Leon is offering free lunch boxes on Saturday and Sunday. You can choose from Black cardamon chicken korma, Moroccan me*tballs (pictured above), Brazilian black beans, or a satay chicken box. The freebie is available from 11am till close while stocks last. The promo is available via the LEON Club app using the code LEONMARATHON to claim the offer.
Where? With over 60 branches in London, take your pick from the full list of Leon restaurants here.
How far? The nearest restaurant to the finish is Leon on the Strand, a 14-minute walk from the finish line.
3. MEATliquor
What? MEATliquor will be offering all medal bearers their choice of any meat, vegetarian, or vegan burger from their menu. Simply flash your medal when ordering to redeem your meal.
Where? The offer is available at any of their nine London locations on Sunday 2 October
How far? Ease out your legs with a gentle one mile walk to their nearest branch by Oxford Circus, or take the tube to your pick of their remaining restaurants.
4. Three Cheers Pubs
What? If you’re pining for a post-race pint, you’re in luck. All nine Three Cheers pubs in London are offering medal bearers one free drink between 12pm and 11pm on Sunday. You can choose from a pint of beer, 175ml red or white wine, a house spirit and mixer, one 125ml glass of prosecco or a soft drink. Just show your medal at the bar.
Where? There are nine venues to choose from including The Tommyfield in Kennington, The Stonhouse (Clapham Common), The Latchmere (Battersea Park), The Bolingbroke (Clapham Junction/Clapham South), The Avalon (Clapham South), The Abbeville (Clapham South), The Rosendale (West Dulwich), The Princess Victoria (Shepard's Bush) and The Bedford (Balham).
How far? The nearest to the finish is The Tommyfield in Kennington which is a five minute tube journey from Charing Cross, then a five minute walk.
5. Bills
What? Burger lovers rejoice, for Bill’s are offering all medal bearers a complementary burger and beet to runners who choose to dine at any of their London branches this Sunday. All you need to do is choose from their classic, chicken, Bourbon BBQ, or vegan burgers and flash your 2022 medal when ordering.
Where? This offer is available at all of their 11 London restaurants.
How far? The in Soho, Covent Garden and London Victoria are less than a mile’s walk from the finish line.
6. Protein Rebel
What? This eco-friendly sports nutrition brand is offering runners 20% off anything from their website www.proteinrebel.com until Saturday 15 October. You can choose from a wide array of protein and recovery supplements, including their new collagen powder, to improve your post-race recovery. Did someone say chocolate milk?
Where? This offer is only available online - simply apply the code RUN20 at the checkout
How far? Just a couple of clicks away on your smartphone!
- WAITING TO HEAR FROM -
The Real Greek
What?
You can get a free Greek plate (or vegan Greek plate) at any of The Real Greek’s restaurants from Sunday 3rd until Friday 8th October. There is a good range of options available, and there are four branches of the restaurant within walking distance of the finish line.
Crosstown Doughnuts
We are hoping to continue last year's offer for a free coffee with every doughnut purchased, on presentation of the participant's medal.
This offer is planned to run on the 2nd October, across all of our stores. While the latter point is still in discussion, this is our goal!
Every pizza lover wants to be able to experience that same deliciousness the next day when eating the leftover slices. It all boils down to how you reheat it.
I tried the recently opened 1864 Bar on top of John Lewis’ flagship Oxford Street store and it was surprisingly chilled despite being in such a busy location.
A whole 11 minutes after news broke that Emma Raducanu had pulled out from her mixed doubles appearance with her son, Judy Murray could not hide her feelings any longer.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry made a silent alteration to Archie's birth certificate, it has been revealed, amid speculation of tensions with the Royal Family
Emma Raducanu is back in action at Wimbledon today as she faces Maria Sakkari in the third round of the women's singles amid speculation over relationship with Man Utd legend's son
The rush to effect “change” in the next 100 days will become irresistible and the need to tear up the Labour manifesto to justify painful taxes on pensions, savings and “wealth” held in assets will play out.
